Mrs.
Bell pitied her with all her heart, but she said no more.

She remained at the house while the funeral procession was gone to the grave; and some friends came back with Mary Erskine, after the funeral.

They all, however, went away about sunset, leaving Mary Erskine alone with her children.
As soon as her friends had gone, Mary Erskine took the children and sat down in a rocking-chair, before the fire, holding them both in her lap, the baby upon one side and Bella upon the other, and began to rock back and forth with great rapidity.

She kissed the children again and again, with many tears, and sometimes she groaned aloud, in the excess of her anguish.

She remained sitting thus for half an hour.